Make That an Italian Schnitzel

DEAR SOS: Can you obtain the recipe for Cotoletta Milanese from Cafe Bellissimo in Woodland Hills? It’s one of the best I’ve had.

RANDALL WIXEN

Calabasas

DEAR RANDALL: Emilio Bellissimo sent this recipe. You can use chicken breasts in place of the veal. Italian Cotoletta Milanese appears under different names and styles in many cuisines (Wiener schnitzel in German, for example, and the Mexican milanesa). It’s a classic dish that is always a treat when done well. Some restaurants use pounded veal rib steak cooked with the bone intact. Delicious.

Cafe Bellissimo Cotoletta Milanese

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 20 minutes

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon minced parsley

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 cup fresh bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

4 (4 1/2-ounce) boneless veal cutlets, pounded thin

1/2 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

1/4 cup white wine

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup chicken stock

Beat the eggs in a bowl with the garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. Combine the bread crumbs and Romano cheese in another bowl. Dip each cutlet into the egg mixture, then dredge it in the bread crumb mixture to coat well. Repeat with other cutlets. Finish dipping and breading all the cutlets.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the breaded cutlets and brown them evenly on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the cutlets to a platter.

Drain all but 1 teaspoon of oil from the skillet. Add the butter, and, once it has melted, add the wine and heat 30 seconds. Add the cutlets, lemon juice and chicken stock and simmer 2 minutes, turning once.

Arrange the cutlets on a platter and pour the lemon-chicken stock mixture over the meat. Serve at once.

4 servings. Each serving: 389 calories; 811 mg sodium; 229 mg cholesterol; 26 grams fat; 5 grams carbohydrates; 31 grams protein; 0.11 gram fiber.

*

* Plate from California Marketing Associates.